Picture Credit: BCCI/IPL
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is one of the biggest cricketing leagues in the world, and the game fever begins right from the auction table. The IPL 2025 mega auction, which was held across two days (November 24 and 25) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia also saw some of the highest bids along with several surprises. This year, Rishabh Pant ended up being the most expensive player, not only in IPL 2025 mega auction, but in the history of the tournament. The 27-year-old was signed by Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) for INR 27 Crore after an intense bidding war with SunRisers Hyderabad (KKR) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).
But there have been some players who have attracted bids from several different franchises. In one such instance, this moment took place in the very first IPL auction in 2008, which saw several Indian players get under hammer, but all teams bid for former India captain and legend, MS Dhoni, but Chennai Super Kings (CSK) finally acquired his services.
MS Dhoni only player to attract bids from all IPL franchises so far
The only player who was the favorite of all franchises was Indian wicketkeeper-batter MS Dhoni. Richard Madley, who was the auctioneer for the first IPL auction, recently stated that Dhoni was the player which every franchise was bidding on. He said, “I don’t remember that being the case. But of course, there was interest from many franchises.' He further added that CSK was quite determined to buy him right from the start.
When the bidding price reached INR 7 Crore, most of the franchises took a backseat, except CSK and Mumbai Indians. At the end, both teams settled on INR 12 Crore, but after a point Mumbai Indians gave up, and CSK secured his services. Dhoni since then has played for CSK, helping the franchise to win the title five times. Dhoni made his debut for IPL in 2008 and has played 264 matches. In the IPL 2024 season, he played 14 matches, scoring 161 runs.
Investment in Dhoni by the CSK franchise in IPL 2008 proved profitable for the rest of the seasons. Under Dhoni's captaincy, CSK won five IPL titles and has been consistently ranked among the league's most formidable teams. However, Dhoni's effect was not only limited to winning trophies. His leadership style and unrivaled connection to Tamil Nadu won him the label of 'Thala' (leader).
